Minecraft is a beast of a game to maintain. With so many ports over the years, there have been variants of the game’s code for just about any gaming platform or device. And now, the mess of varied updates and versions is being simplified. Mojang has done things like this before, by getting rid of older versions on ailing hardware—PS3 versions come to mind.
The gaming company has had to reduce their workload, which makes sense, in order to focus on delivering new features and bug fixes. Where possible, the company has supplanted older versions of the game with Bedrock, and that’s been a great stopgap. But really, the ultimate goal is to get the game running on as few versions of the code base as possible.
Minecraft is playable just about on anything, from PlayStation to Xbox to Nintendo to mobile devices. The Bedrock edition has been the core element here. The console and mobile versions aren’t being updated, so it’s not an issue for users on those devices. But for those playing on PC, there are a few concerns. Here’s what you need to know about the impending Java and Bedrock editions merge.
Why is the Java and Bedrock editions merge happening?
Minecraft has been trying to get feature and update parity for some time. Mojang has been slowly adding a bunch of new features over time, and that has presented a problem. From a software development perspective, the issue is that having to maintain multiple software branches is expensive and time-consuming. Mojang is finally dealing with this issue—with a version merger.
The game has been trying to pare back the number of different versions being run over the years. The implementation of the Bedrock edition was the culmination of that effort. And now, the Bedrock edition will effectively be updated to run across the same branch for the PC version. It’s worth noting that this change only affects PC, just to make that very clear.
What happens to a Minecraft account after Java and Bedrock editions merge?
From a technical perspective, there’s a bit changing depending on which version you’re running. There are two considerations here, one is payment. That’s the easy part, as basically you’re getting a free upgrade. if you already own either Java or Bedrock edition, you’ll automatically get the other one for free. Mojang has not addressed those who have already paid for both versions — there’s no word on whether they’re going to get a refund or anything of the sort. In essence, your Mojang account will remain the same, you will just be able to play on PC all on the same branch of game versions.
The other issue is for those running servers or having to deal with the more technical aspects of the game. Modders and the like will have to update mods post-merger to get things working correctly, that’s going to cause some chaos, but not impossible to do.
Nothing’s changing for regular players who are using one version or another, not really. You don’t need to do anything more than apply patches as you normally would. Mojang explained in its announcement, that those are explicitly staying as two separate games. You’re just running them from the same launcher now. And again, for those running versions like Pocket Edition, you aren’t being affected here.
